The Best of Native American Lit

My Home As I Remember is a collection of 60 over pieces of writing on the achievements of First Nations, Inuit and Metis women across Canada and the United States.

Lee Maracle herself is one of the most prolific aboriginal authors and voices in Canada and a recognized authority on issues pertaining to aboriginal people and aboriginal literature.

Let's be honest - the portrayal of Native Americans on screen hasn't been the most representative and authentic. Stereotypes are rife and lazy portrayals seem to overrun the industry.

Hollywood’s Pixeled Skins is an anthology of critical reviews that reexamines the ways in which American Indians have traditionally been portrayed in film. It offers indispensible perspectives from American Indian cultures to foreground the dramatic, frequently ridiculous difference between the experiences of Native peoples and their depiction in film. By pointing out and poking fun at the dominant ideologies and perpetuation of stereotypes of Native Americans in Hollywood, the book gives readers the ability to recognize both good filmmaking and the dangers of misrepresenting aboriginal peoples.

Linda Hogan is a Chickasaw, and her work mostly focuses on nature and the environment. In 1980, she was awarded the Five Civilized Tribes Play Writing Award and was inducted into the Chickasaw Hall of Fame in 2007.

Walk Gently Upon the Earth is her ode to mother nature, with her collection of poems which contain peaceful encounters with the birds, the wind, and the trees. This is food for the spirit, and the word touches your soul and refreshes your spirit with its gentle wisdom and simple beauty.

What does war mean for the Native Americans? And how long are its effects? Informative and thought-provoking, this book is a great read into the historical impact of war and environmental destruction on Indian lands starting manifest destiny all the way up to the current situations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

WInona LaDuke is one of the most prolific Native American writers and activists around, raising awareness on environmental damage and destruction on Native American lands.

Eastman was the first author to address American history from a native point of view, writing a number of books that detailed his own past as well as Native American culture and history.

Soul Talk, Song Language gathers together in one complete collection many of these explorations and conversations. Through an eclectic assortment of media, including personal essays, interviews, and newspaper columns, Harjo reflects upon the nuances and development of her art, the importance of her origins, and the arduous reconstructions of the tribal past, as well as the dramatic confrontation between Native American and Anglo civilizations.

In the imagined future of Treaty Shirts, seven natives are exiled from federal sectors that have replaced federal reservations; they pursue the liberty of an egalitarian government on an island in Lake of the Woods. These seven narrators, known only by native nicknames, are related to characters in Vizenor’s other novels and stories.

Vizenor is an Anishinaabe writer and activist, and is outspoken on the layered identity and self of Natives in today's age.

Momaday is a Native American author of Kiowa descent and House Made of Dawn is considered a classic in Native American Literature.

The magnificent Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of a proud stranger in his native land, chronicling life inside and outside of mainstream society. A deep read into this also reveals the Native American beliefs and customs, actual geographical locations, and realistic events.

Silko is a Laguna Pueblo writer and one of the key figures in the First Wave of what is called the Native American Renaissance. She has remained grounded in the history-filled landscape of the Laguna Pueblo, and her experiences in the culture have fueled an interest to preserve cultural traditions and understand the impact of the past on contemporary life.

A well-known novelist and poet, Silko's career has been characterized by making people aware of ingrained racism and white cultural imperialism, and a commitment to support women's issues.

If you must read a book on Columbus," declared the Los Angeles Times in its review of The Heirs of Columbus, "this is the one."

Gerald Vizenor's novel reclaims the story of Christopher Columbus on behalf of Native Americans by declaring the explorer himself to be a descendent of early Mayans and follows the adventures of his modern-day, mixed-blood heirs as they create a fantastic tribal nation.

The Plague of Doves is a gripping novel about a long-unsolved crime in a small North Dakota town and how, years later, the consequences are still being felt by the community and a nearby Native American reservation. Though generations have passed, the town of Pluto continues to be haunted by the murder of a farm family.

The Antelope Wife is Native American magical realism in its finest. We get a man who is able to wean a newborn, and a cake that tastes of grief and joy. The novel is about scattered families, who like beads in a tapestry, are woven together to form patterns, a larger picture. Following generational deaths, births and marriages, the novel loops and twists through years of history, to give us a beautiful piece of work.